In addition, on Monday, a federal judge in Los Angeles also sentenced Artashes Darbinyan to pay over $1.5 million in restitution. US District Judge Stephen V. Wilson additionally ordered that Darbinyan’s two co-conspirators serve 18 and 24 months in prison, with restitution orders ranging from $1.04 to $1.2 million each.

Darbinyan’s scheme involved setting up a company that he called the “Trademark Compliance Office” and another called “Trademark Compliance Center.” Beginning in September 2013, he sent out unsolicited, official-looking (but fake) invoices to over 100,000 unsuspecting businesses. The letter, complete with a return envelope, would ask for a $385 “processing fee” promising trademark registration and monitoring services that did not exist. The return address was one of a few cities in and around Washington, DC. This gave the letter the veneer of legitimacy.